Only on a Cold Day
by AcerbusEquinomin56
Summary: The forecast clearly stated that no one should leave the house that night, but there was more than a storm to look forward to. Tendershipping.


It was getting colder and Bakura sat at the kitchen table, drumming his fingers, waiting for Ryou to return home. He had gone to the supermarket to pick up some supplies for the snowstorm that had been forecasted for that night. Apparently, it was supposed to be a large one since Ryou had been buzzing about it all week. Bakura sat irritated and continued drumming his fingers on the smooth surface of the table.

Ryou hadn't taken Bakura with him that day because of Bakura's previous…efforts…to slip things into his pockets while in the store. Ryou was getting tired of checking Bakura on the way out of the check-out line, so he made Bakura stay home. The result was an unhappy spirit, plotting revenge in some docile, yet potentially malicious manner. But, of course, that was the every day for Bakura.

His ears perked as he heard the front door being opened. He listened as the shuffled footsteps brought themselves into the kitchen, bouncing back to the feet of a weighted down Ryou, carrying two large brown paper bags full of more stuff than could possibly be needed for a snowstorm. Bakura raised an eyebrow at the volume of the bags.

Ryou spoke as he set them down on the table.

"Hey, help me unpack these please."

Bakura groaned and looked up at the ceiling, trying to think of something to divert his attention away from what he was asked to do. Ryou was already unpacking the first bag by the time Bakura realized he couldn't think of anything good enough.

"Fine."

He reached his hands into the second bag and pulled out a can of hot cocoa mix. He blinked and put it on the table. He reached in again and pulled out a medium sized package of miniature marshmallows. He blinked again. He reached in once more and pulled out, to his surprise, a board game. At this point, he turned around to see Ryou busily ensconcing items in various cupboards.

"Ryou…what did you have in mind for today?"

He didn't bother turning around as he continued putting things away.

"Oh well, since the storm is on its way, I didn't think it'd be a good idea to go out and get caught in it. So, I planned on spending the afternoon here."

Bakura looked back at the board game.

"Oh dear…"

The afternoon could not go quick enough. Bakura sat on the living room floor, playing the second of three board games (as he was to find out) that Ryou had bought while he had been out. The sky remained a taunting shade of grey, yet never once dropped a single flake of snow. Bakura often looked out the window, in hope of some distraction from the cardboard menace he was faced with, but to no avail.

It was Ryou's turn in the game. He rolled the dice and moved his token forward five spaces, landing on another card question that Bakura was positive had been designed solely for his torture. Before Ryou could read the inscription however, Bakura interrupted him.

"Ryou…do you not have any fun games like…Twister?"

"Twister?"

Ryou looked at Bakura strangely.

"I saw it on a commercial once…"

"Oh…um…no…I don't…"

"Is there anything else to do then?"

"Well…um…we have that other game…or…um…"

"Can't think of anything?"

"Not really…"

"How about that game…what's it called, that you play with friends…where you ask questions and you have to answer them?"

"Wait, you mean truth or dare?"

"Yeah. That sounds like it."

"I don't know about that…game…"

"Would you rather play a shadow game?"

"Not particularly."

"Then truth or dare it is."

Ryou looked pitifully at Bakura, who ceded a little once hit by the mercy beam. No one could stand against the utter power of Ryou's mercy beam.

"Alright, I won't make the questions too horrible…"

"Okay then."

Ryou lightened a little, but still looked apprehensive. Bakura smiled and opened his mouth to say something, before stopping and looking contemplative.

"…how do play this game anyway?"

Ryou laughed.

"Basically, depending on whose turn it is, someone asks a yes or no question and the other person has to answer it truthfully."

"Is that it?"

"Pretty much…except you can choose dare…but I'd rather not have that option…"

Bakura grinned, which wasn't a good sign.

"Afraid you'd do something you'd regret?"

Ryou didn't answer. Bakura smirked and stretched out on the floor, lying on his stomach.

"Alright then, I'll start us off. Let's see…question…question…"

Ryou grew grimmer the longer Bakura thought about it.

"Oh, I know…have you ever stolen anything?"

Ryou sighed in relief.

"No. Not that I know of."

Bakura grimaced and rolled over on his back.

"Fine. Your turn."

Ryou looked around the room, trying to think of a question.

"Um…would you try any food once?"

Bakura blinked.

"Sure. Better than starving."

Ryou waited as Bakura hummed evilly.

"Have you ever…cheated on any of your tests?"

He shook his head.

"No…I don't think so…"

Bakura sighed.

"This isn't much fun if you haven't done anything…although…"

He smiled to himself. Meanwhile, Ryou was trying to think of another question.

"Um…hm…have you…ever had déjà vu?"

"Yeah, all the time."

Ryou waited as a large grin tore over Bakura's face.

"Are you a virgin?"

Ryou went red.

"What! Bakura!"

"Well? Are you?"

He was clearly enjoyed this.

"Of course I am! What did you think?"

"Well, I don't know…you might have done some things I didn't know about…"

"Really? Then what about you?"

"What?"

"What about you? Are you one?"

Bakura apparently had not expected to have the question turned on him, which was clear from a small thin red line spreading across his cheeks. Ryou however gave no pity.

"Well?"

"…so what if I am?"

Bakura turned his head to look away from Ryou's face, which was a bit stunned. The shock did not last for long however as he started laughing. Bakura frowned and waited for the laughter to cease. It did eventually, at which point Ryou stretched out beside Bakura on the floor.

"Did you ever like anyone?"

Bakura looked sharply over. Ryou was lying in the opposite direction, staring at the ceiling.

"What does that matter?"

"I was just wondering…"

A small silence rose from the air, evoked from calm. The traces of bird whistles came into the calm and sank to the floor. It was a while before an answer came.

"No. I never did."

"Never?"

Ryou turned slightly, his face resting on his hair. Bakura was looking at the ceiling now.

"What about you?"

Ryou hushed a breath and let it breathe.

"Not really…"

"No?"

"No…I never had the opportunity…"

Ryou looked at the sky. It was still grey. Bakura's eyes were starting to grow the same color.

Somehow the afternoon wore into evening, much to Bakura's delight since Ryou had run out of board games and couldn't seem to find any of the others that Bakura had the foresight to hide. The sky had turned from grey to a disgruntled shade of black. It was getting dark, nearly to where they couldn't see, so Ryou turned on a nearby lamp.

Bakura looked at Ryou. They were both sitting up now, but still on the living room floor.

"So, now what?"

Ryou looked at him blankly for a moment before he completely lit up.

"I'll be right back!"

He jumped up from the floor and ran off into the kitchen, where he could be heard banging a few pots around. Bakura didn't bother to investigate. Ryou wasn't the best at hiding secrets, so whatever he was doing would reveal itself soon enough.

And it did. Ryou walked back into the living room several minutes later carrying two steaming mugs of hot chocolate, both piled high with a small mountain of miniature marshmallows. Bakura eyed them suspiciously as Ryou sat back down and handed Bakura his.

"What is this?"

"Hot chocolate. I almost forgot I bought it."

Ryou took a sip and made an appropriate noise. Bakura didn't think it was quite so appropriate and so quickly took a large gulp of the liquid. He found that the sound wasn't quite so inappropriate after all. He smiled as the creamy concoction trailed down his throat, sending warm little pulses through his ribs and down into his stomach.

He turned to Ryou.

"This is good."

"Yeah, and that marshmallow moustache fits you so well."

"What?"

Ryou smiled. Bakura felt his face and realized in horror that a long string of the white sugary goodness had attached itself to his upper lip. He quickly tried to wipe it away and Ryou began laughing.

"Hey, shut up!"

Ryou slowly acquiesced into a contented silence as they both continued sipping their drinks, long after the initial steam had finished rising from their cups. They sat in the lamplight, trying to find something to talk about.

"Do you remember the time we went to the beach and you kept trying to chase the birds?"

"How could I forget…they retaliated…"

Ryou hummed a chuckle.

"That was a nice trip…they had my favorite kind of ice cream down there…"

"It was too hot down there."

"Well, maybe…but it was still a nice place…I'd like to go back sometime…"

Bakura looked over to see Ryou quite transfixed with memories. He leaned back against the couch.

"Eh…it was okay…there are better places…"

Ryou came a little out of the trance.

"Oh? Where would you want to go?"

Bakura crossed his arms behind his head, lying back on the couch cushions.

"I don't know. Anywhere. It's not like I like staying in one place for too long…"

"Do you like it here?"

"What?"

"I mean, do you like living here?"

"…I've lived in better places."

Ryou turned to look at Bakura.

"That didn't answer my question."

Bakura frowned.

"Huh?"

"Do you not like it here?"

Bakura didn't say anything for a moment or two.

"Do you like it here?"

Ryou startled at the question.

"Yes. Of course I do."

"Then, I guess I like it here too."

Bakura had turned a little, to rest on his elbow, facing Ryou. He didn't look very much like himself in the low light. Ryou met his eyes only for a moment before looking away. They looked too golden to be met. When he turned back, Bakura had moved much closer, his face a wistful foot away from Ryou's. It was almost enough that words could hit the cheeks instead of the ears. Ryou then looked down a bit, waiting for whatever was to happen. Bakura eased inches in and then

Black.

The light had gone out, leaving everything in complete darkness.

"Oh! The power must have gone out…"

Ryou's voice spoke into the dark space. It was rather soft, now that he didn't have to worry about a past moment. There was a strong gust of wind whistling over the roof. Ryou spoke again.

"We should probably go to sleep now…since there won't be anything else to do…"

There was a silence before Bakura slowly spoke, his voice a bit different in the darkness.

"Fine."

Ryou stood up and pawed around, trying not to trip over anything, though succeeding in bumping into most everything. Bakura seemed to walk quite stealthily around, weaving around everything and even Ryou as he made his way down the hall and into his bedroom. By the time Ryou had finally found a wall to follow, Bakura had already shut his bedroom door, leaving Ryou alone.

The black feel of the night provided one of oddest feelings to sleep to. The wind almost gave a voice to it, whispering to everything, speaking little pieces of cold gossip from wherever it had just come from. It didn't take long for Ryou to fall asleep.

He woke in an odd place. Everything seemed so colorful. It was actually quite delightful. He hopped out of the flowerbed he had woken up in, surrounded by tulips, and onto a large field of grass with a large crystal fountain in the middle. It was beautiful and sprayed cascades of shimmering water.

He walked up to the fountain and stuck his hand through one of the sheets of water, both sides dividing over his hand. The water was sun-warmed and silver. He turned and surveyed the land around him, taking it for some sort of park.

Somehow though, none of this felt quite right. There was something he was missing, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was. Oh well, he thought. Maybe he'd think of it eventually.

He walked away from the fountain and reached a tidy path that wound through the area. He stopped every once in a while to look at another attraction seemingly set up to attract attention. It wasn't just things either, but people. He saw many people he knew, but…they didn't seem quite normal either…

Ryou stopped on his way down the road to take note of a large figure coming his way. It looked like Kaiba. It was Kaiba! And he was smiling. He was also wearing bunny ears and carrying a basket. Ryou blinked. That certainly wasn't normal.

By the time he reached Kaiba, he could hear his rich peer shouting to high heavens,

"Eggs for all! Eggs for all! Anyone, everyone, have an egg!"

As he shouted this, he was throwing eggs he had in his basket into the air. Ryou calmly made it past him, as Kaiba took no notice of him. A little farther on, Ryou found Joey riding a merry-go-round with clouds instead of horses.

Nothing seemed quite right as Ryou came across Duke Devlin juggling an enthusiastic group of penguins or as he found Yugi, Tristan and Pegasus all playing in a swinging jazz band. He still couldn't think of what it was he was missing, something very much close to his mind, on the tip of his tongue, yet always invisibly hard to find.

He noticed however that everything seemed to be getting darker the farther he walked, until he eventually reached the end of the road he'd been walking. The sky before him was black, the landscape as well, and everything was cut off from the color it had previously been so saturated in. It was cold there, as he kept walking, and grew colder every step he took.

Pretty soon, he couldn't see back where he had come from, the lights almost vanishing from sight and the dark growing impossibly darker all the time. He took one final step and felt himself falling, hurtling through this intangible darkness, the wind shrieking again like a great many voices.

He kept falling until the darkness began to decrease the further he fell. He slowed as the air grew thicker and warmer and lighter. It balanced out to the color of honey and felt like a vast pool of melted butter. Somehow it was nicer here than in any other place, colored or not. It was warm here…warm…

Warm…

Ryou woke up. The darkness returned before his eyes, everything still just as blind as it had been. He did however feel oddly different, warm almost and heavy. He shifted a bit before he realized that someone was wrapped around him.

"Bakura! What are you doing!"

"Too cold."

The response was mumbled into Ryou's back, where Bakura had closely twined his arms around Ryou's chest and stomach. Ryou answered back.

"What? It didn't get this cold in Egypt?"

"Yes it did, but I've gotten used to being warm."

Ryou closed his eyes for a moment, granting silence, before trying to argue again.

"Bakura…"

"It's too cold to sleep alone."

"But…"

"Just go back to sleep..."

Ryou probably would have continued arguing had it not been for the sound of Bakura's teeth chattering. Apparently, he was extremely cold. Ryou could feel as much from where Bakura had placed his feet against his own. Ryou curled his toes a little and sighed. He'd try, but he didn't know if he'd get back to sleep again that night.

The wind continued on in unbroken song, gushes of it hitting the windows, shaking the structure of the rooms around them, yet they somehow didn't notice. An earthquake probably wouldn't have woken them. They were as close as any two people could be and both felt as safe as they ever could. It was too warm to be afraid of anything.

Morning came and the darkness broke. Thin beams of sunlight began to light upon a huddled mass of two bodies. By the time the thin beams had turned to thick rays, one began to wake up.

Bakura sensed morning. He always had. Old habits die hard.

He moved a bit to stretch as he usually did to wake up, but this time, couldn't. His face could still frown. He tried again, bumping against something rather solid in his way. Solid and _soft_. He opened his eyes and realized that not only was he not in his bed, he was in Ryou's bed…with Ryou.

It also didn't help that at that point Ryou had turned around in his sleep and nuzzled into Bakura's chest. At least they were wearing clothes…technically.

Bakura thought for a moment before coming to the most logical conclusion that could be had at that moment.

"Well, this is awkward…"

Ryou shifted, sending Bakura into damage-control mode. He tried to look as innocent as possible, which isn't the easiest thing to pull off when you happen to be a vengeful spirit.

Ryou opened his eyes to Bakura, his face resting on his palm, propped up on a pillow. He was staring down with a nonchalant look on his face. He spoke with little emotion.

"Hey."

Out of some reflex, Ryou instantaneously moved both feet up and pushed into Bakura's stomach, effectively launching him off the bed. At which point, Ryou sat up and rearranged his twisted T-shirt and pajama pants. Bakura scrambled off the floor and pulled himself to look over the bed in an irritated wheeze.

"What…the hell, Ryou…what the hell…"

"Umm…"

They both stared at each other for a moment before Ryou suddenly perked and looked out the window. His posture rose a few inches before he leapt out of bed, running down the hall and into the kitchen, sending shouts down the hallway.

"It snowed! Bakura, it snowed! Get ready, we'll go outside and make a snowman!"

Bakura looked, mouth open, in the direction of the hallway before slumping back down on the bed. For once, he'd rather stay inside.

A/N:

So, hi, here's another Tendershipping fic. When I wrote the first one, I honestly didn't know if I'd write another one, since I wasn't sure if another one would come. I'm happy it did though.

I don't even know about some of this, the plot anyway.

I think the way I see the story happening is that all of this takes place pretty much after the series ends…where evil is defeated and left sulking in the form of Bakura, who has basically resigned to become a presence more than a possessor. It seems to make sense to me that he's become a bit lazier after his fuel for revenge kind of fizzed out and Ryou is now free to go about everyday life.

I also think that Ryou, though naturally shy, would come out of his shell if really given the chance and is around people he's comfortable with.

Also, for anyone wondering, I get the picture of Ryou sleeping in pajama pants and an old, loose T-shirt, while Bakura sleeps in pajama pants…or maybe shorts. Something like that.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it!

Please review!


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